Lodsys Patents Under Attack as Legal Challenge to Their Validity Commences

macrumors bot

FOSS Patents reports that Lodsys, the company that has begun filing lawsuits against App Store developers for implementing in app purchases and upgrade links, now finds itself on the receiving end of legal action. According to the report, a Michigan firm has filed a request for declaratory judgment regarding the validity of the four patents Lodsys is using in its own lawsuits. While a declaratory judgment against Lodsys would not automatically invalidate the firm's patent claims, it would set the legal framework for further challenges and negotiations both in and out of court.

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Yesterday, the aforementioned Michigan company -- ForeSee Results, Inc. -- filed a proactive declaratory judgment action against all four Lodsys patents. In that complaint, ForeSee Results Inc. said that Lodsys had "threatened assertion" of one or more of its four patents against ForeSee's customers. Foresee names three examples of customers that received letters from Lodsys:

- Adidas (I have published that assertion letter on Scribd so you can take a look at it; it includes a claim chart that looks similar as the ones that many app developers received, though it relates to a different patent)

- Best Buy

- WE Energies

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The report notes that the move is a preemptive strike by ForeSee Results, as its initial filing in Illinois could allow it to have any future lawsuits filed against the named companies transferred there instead of being adjudicated in the patent holder-friendly courts of the Eastern District of Texas where Lodsys has been filing its suits so far. And while the legal challenge to Lodsys' patents does not directly include the App Store developers targeted by the firm, a win for ForeSee Results could help bolster the developers' cases should a verdict come soon enough.

macrumors G5

macrumors member

Validity schmalidity. Thomas Edison taught us all you don't have to invent anything to be considered an inventor. Just patent EVERYTHING, sue people who actually do the inventing, lather, rinse, repeat. That is the American way! To question validity of a patent is to question the patent system itself, and force real innovation.

macrumors 6502a

Why are some courts more patent-holder friendly? I guess the law can be open to some interpretation, but for one area to be consistently used to bring these patent cases does sound a lot like there are backhanders being made.

macrumors 68000

Why are some courts more patent-holder friendly? I guess the law can be open to some interpretation, but for one area to be consistently used to bring these patent cases does sound a lot like there are backhanders being made.

macrumors 65816

I have a feeling if Apple isn't already providing support in this case (financial or otherwise) they probably will soon. On the other hand, who's to say that Apple didn't instigate this in the first place, and is using this company as a front.

What I really love about this is that Lodsys was getting their extortion money from Apple and others, but now they stand to not only get the extra money they were hoping to get from devs and others, they stand to lose everything.

Good strategy, Lodsys, you will go down in the history books as an example of how NOT to do patent trolling.

macrumors member

I have a feeling if Apple isn't already providing support in this case (financial or otherwise) they probably will soon. On the other hand, who's to say that Apple didn't instigate this in the first place, and is using this company as a front.

What I really love about this is that Lodsys was getting their extortion money from Apple and others, but now they stand to not only get the extra money they were hoping to get from devs and others, they stand to lose everything.

Good strategy, Lodsys, you will go down in the history books as an example of how NOT to do patent trolling.

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Their downfall in the end will be the same as SCO with the sue everybody - take no prisoners approach. I can guarantee there are countless others companies who have FedEx form letters we don't hear about. Hell, it even popped up on the Google News feed last week that they were also targeting online porn companies.

This case is a perfect example of the need for tort reform and the mandatory restitution of legal fees in class action lawsuits by the losing party. Until that happens the US is going to continue on a downward momentum as a safe place for inovation, but unfortunately when we time after time vote for politicians who are ex-lawyers we reap what we sow.

macrumors 68030

Validity schmalidity. Thomas Edison taught us all you don't have to invent anything to be considered an inventor. Just patent EVERYTHING, sue people who actually do the inventing, lather, rinse, repeat. That is the American way! To question validity of a patent is to question the patent system itself, and force real innovation.

Click to expand...

Thomas Edison is a piece of trash. Basically stole ideas from people and then used his celebrity status to spread lies about Tesla.

macrumors G4

well looks like bigger players are seeing the long term results of this being used against them and are going to shut it down early on. Assuming they get it the others can use use that as presidencies to say nope we do not have to pay you.

macrumors 6502a

...This proves the patent system is flawedoor little indie trolls like LodSys don't stand a chance to stick it to the big corporation lobbies and their cross-licensed patent pools... "The Man" always wins in the end... Oh the world is so unfair!!!

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